


Where Do We Go From Here?

by myglassesaredirty



Series: It Had to be You [1]
Category: Psych
Genre: !!!!!! romance !!!!!!, F/M, First Dates, Grandparents & Grandchildren, I Will Go Down With This Ship, Love, Marriage Proposal, Movie Night, Soulmates, True Love, Weddings, by gum i will row this bOaT mYseLF if i have to, episode: s07e02 Juliet Takes a Luvvah, this ship is criminally underrated in this fandom, this took me like. a month
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-27
Updated: 2018-12-27
Packaged: 2019-09-28 06:24:23
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 8,115
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17177606
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/myglassesaredirty/pseuds/myglassesaredirty
Summary: Henry would give anything to go back in time and fix the past so that he could be a better husband and a better father. He's managed to improve his relationship with his son, but he wants Madeleine back in his life. After Shawn walked in on them, it seems like that might be over.Or, in other words, I'm fixing canon because Henry clearly only loves Madeleine.





	Where Do We Go From Here?

**Author's Note:**

> Dawn. Dawn. I finished this. It only took me forever, but I _finished_ it!!!

Maddie huffs out a breath, falling back against the mattress. Henry hangs his head and pushes himself up. “I’ll go talk to him,” Henry says, leaning forward to give her a peck on her lips.

 

Maddie smiles at him and rolls over to find her shirt. “After you talk to him,  _ we,” _ she says, gesturing to the two of them, “should talk about –” she makes the same motion Shawn made the other night, with the waggling fingers and one hand smacking the other.

 

Henry laughs out loud. “Maddie, I knew there was a reason I loved you.” He stands up and grabs the bed sheet.

 

Maddie quirks an eyebrow, watching Henry wrap the bedsheet around his waist. “Loved? Past tense?” A smirk dances on her lips.

 

Henry rolls his eyes fondly and tucks the end of the bedsheet into the skirt he made for himself. “You know I never stopped.”

 

She gestures to the door with her head. “Go talk to him. I’m sure he’s probably going to need therapy for this.”

 

Henry huffs out a breath through his lips. “Yeah, and I’m pretty sure he’s not going to want you to be his therapist for that. I’ll be right back.”

 

Maddie laughs out loud. Once the door closes behind him, she goes back to searching for her shirt.

 

**

 

Henry swings open the door and spreads his arms dramatically. “He’s traumatized,” Henry says, stepping into the bedroom.

 

Maddie rolls her eyes and shakes her head fondly, tossing Henry his boxer pants. Henry manages to catch them and removes his makeshift sheet skirt. “You know, Henry,” she begins, fluffing the pillow that belongs to her side of the bed, “maybe he was right.”

 

Henry furrows his brow and tosses the bedsheet to the ground. “What about?”

 

“About how it was weird that we’re divorced, and now…” She sighs heavily and shakes her head again, this time less fondly. “I came here after I heard that you’d recovered from your gunshot wound. You and Shawn both nearly died.”

 

Henry flops onto the mattress and props himself up with his elbow. “I’ve never seen Shawn like that. Ever.” He licks his lips. “He could have died, Mad, and it– it would have been my fault.”

 

“It could  _ not _ have been your fault,” Maddie says, reaching to grab Henry’s free hand. “I was scared when Shawn first told me how bad it was. I couldn’t possibly get here soon enough.” She shakes her head. “I don’t know what I would do without you  _ there, _ at least, to see Shawn get married and have children and make you more proud each and every day, but I also don’t know what I’d do without you in my life, somehow, someway.” She leans forward and cups his cheek. “I never remarried, Henry. I could never get into a serious relationship after we separated. It was always you,” she whispers. “It was always you.”

 

Henry smiles softly at her. His blue eyes search her own, and his thumb caresses the back of her hand. “Does this mean you want to try again?”

 

“Depends,” Maddie says. “Are you seeing any other women?”

 

Henry barks out a laugh. “No,” he says seriously, his eyes still twinkling with something very familiar to her: a mixture of amusement and love. “No, there’s– no other woman could possibly live up to how amazing you are.”

 

“How do you think Shawn’s going to take it?”

 

Henry lifts one shoulder in a shrug. “He’ll be fine. The real question, however,” he says, suddenly becoming serious, “is if I have to worry about losing you again.”

 

Maddie purses her lips. “I can’t say I’ll stay in one place all 365 days out of every year, but I will say: I’ve missed Santa Barbara. I miss being close to you and Shawn. I miss the way you would always make me pancakes and your horrid coffee after we had a fight. I can get a job back at the station.”

 

Henry turns his face into her hand and kisses her palm. “That also makes you more of a sitting duck if someone targets Shawn’s loved ones again.”

 

“Henry,” she whispers, “I want to try again. Will you let me?”

 

Henry moves to a sitting position and searches Maddie’s eyes for a long time. “Madeleine Spencer,” he says, never once breaking eye contact, “would you like to go on a second first date with me?”

 

“Henry William Spencer,” she says, “I would absolutely love to.”

 

**

 

There’s not much he’s exactly  _ allowed _ to do while recovering from a gunshot wound, and Maddie’s a little hesitant about leaving the house (he tries to tell her that they’ll be safe, but she points out that instance where Shawn was held at gunpoint at a baseball stadium and Henry acquiesces). It takes a little bit of back-and-forth, but they finally agree on a dinner date at a diner nearby.

 

Maddie drives, and the entire ride there, Henry can’t take his eyes off of her. Before they left, she had taken over an hour to get ready: dabbing on makeup, choosing the right outfit, straightening her hair. Her hair partially covers the side of her face, and as she drives, she taps her fingers on the steering wheel.

 

“Maddie?”

 

“Mhm?” Her eyes remain fixed on the road.

 

Henry laughs to himself.  _ She’s always been a nervous driver. _ “You are the most amazing woman I have ever known.”

 

Maddie rolls her eyes fondly. “How so?”

 

Henry twists in his seat to look at her better. “You are so ridiculously brilliant, Mad. And you always used that to help others, even though you could have done the exact opposite.” He notices how the corner of Maddie’s mouth twitches upward, and he grins in response. “And your kindness and gentleness is amazing. You have a patience for everyone that I just…that I never did. That’s why you are such a good psychologist and why you are the best mother I’ve ever met.”

 

Maddie shakes her head. “Of course you’re going to say that, Henry. I’m the mother of your child.”

 

“But you love Shawn so much. You defended him a lot during our marriage. And I remember how he would always ask you to sing him lullabies and how he always preferred your food as compared to mine –”

 

“Except when it came to steak,” Maddie interjects.

 

Henry hums in agreement. “My point is, every moment I saw you with Shawn, I fell more deeply in love with you.”

 

Maddie licks her lips. Henry can see the question in her eyes:  _ well, why did our marriage fall apart? _ Despite this, she doesn’t say anything.

 

Henry sighs and runs his hand over his scalp. “Listen, Mads, I want to apologize for not being everything you needed. We should have traveled more. I shouldn’t have dedicated so much time to my job. I shouldn’t have pushed Shawn so hard. I should have been everything you needed.”

 

The diner is right in front of them, and Maddie doesn’t respond immediately. She pulls into the parking lot, finds a parking space, and turns off the ignition. Turning to him, she says, “Henry, both of us put too much time into our jobs. Our marriage didn’t fall apart because we fell out of love; we were just going in two different directions.” She leans forward and takes his hand. “You tried to fix our marriage, and for that, I will forever be grateful.”

 

Henry squeezes her hand. “You want to go inside and have the best worst date?”

 

Maddie laughs. “Of course, Henry.”

 

**

 

“One strawberry milkshake,” Henry announces to his wife, sliding her milkshake across the table to her. He sits down across from her and jerks his head towards the counter. “Food’s coming.”

 

Maddie sips on her milkshake. “You didn’t get one?”

 

Henry holds up one finger. “A) I prefer vanilla milkshakes in the first place.” He holds up another finger. “Secondly, doctor’s orders. I can’t have a milkshake.”

 

Maddie gently pushes her milkshake aside and folds her arms on the table. “And since when have you ever paid attention to doctor’s orders?”

 

Henry winks at her. “Since I got shot in the chest and my son glared at me and then demanded that I listen to whatever the doctor says.”

 

Maddie smiles at him. “Shawn does love you, you know.”

 

Henry sighs. “Yeah, I know. I just wish that I hadn’t screwed up our relationship before he left Santa Barbara.”

 

Maddie purses her lips. “New rule for this specific date night: the only things we can say about Shawn are happy things. Like his toaster alarm that woke you up.”

 

At the memory, Henry can’t help but chuckle. “That kid,” he says, shaking his head. “Why did he think that was such a good idea?”

 

Maddie snorts in laughter, lifting her hand to cover her smile. “His  _ face!” _

 

“He was holding the toaster alarm in his hands! There was no way I couldn’t not blame him!”

 

_ “Your _ face when it smacked you!” Maddie presses her hands against the table and laughs outright. It’s been years since Henry has seen her this happy.

 

“Hey,  _ you _ weren’t the one who got smacked in the face with a rubbery waffle!”

 

A waitress comes to their table, bearing their orders. Henry and Maddie both have to take a few breaths for them to calm down, and then they turn to the waitress.

 

The waitress is about ten years older than Henry with gray-streaked black hair and purple eyeshadow. She holds up the order in her left hand. “Hamburger with pickles and a side of fries?”

 

Maddie lifts her hand, still trying to maintain her composure.

 

The waitress looks at Henry and quirks her eyebrow. “I suppose that means this chicken sandwich is for you.”

 

Henry nods and accepts his food. He raises his eyebrows at Maddie, who has her burger in both hands. “Brace yourself,” Henry says. “I don’t know how good this is.”

 

Maddie grins devilishly. “On the count of three,” she says. “One.”

 

“Two,” Henry says, pulling his sandwich closer to his face.

 

“Three!” Maddie shouts, biting into her hamburger at the same time Henry takes a bite of his chicken sandwich.

 

Henry’s sandwich is decent. He personally prefers Maddie’s chicken sandwiches, but that’s just his bias talking. There isn’t too much grease, and while the chicken is bland, it’s not bad as far as chicken sandwiches go.

 

Maddie, on the other hand, doesn’t like her meal. Her face scrunches almost immediately and she drops her burger like it’s poison. She squeezes her eyes shut as she slowly chews past the old meat and sour pickles, and she reaches for her milkshake as soon as her food is chewed up enough to swallow. Once she swallows the food and the milkshake, she relaxes.

 

Henry’s eyes twinkle. “That bad, huh?”

 

Maddie rolls her eyes and grabs his chicken sandwich and takes a bite out of it. “Shut up.”

 

**

 

Maddie has arranged for an official interview with Chief Vick to take on a job as the head department psychologist. As she hurries down the stairs the morning of her interview, buttoning her blouse, she casually glances at the kitchen table and notices a vase full of red and pink roses. When Maddie gets closer, she takes a quick count and notices that there are exactly eleven roses. She shakes her head and is about to walk out of the door when her eye catches the note resting against the other side of the vase. Glancing behind her, she picks it up and opens it.

 

_ Mad, _

_ I just wanted to wish you “good luck” on your interview today. You’ll be great, just like you always are. I would have handed you this in person, but Shawn needed my help for a case (as always). When you get home, I’ll have steaks on the grill. I love you, Maddie. _

 

_ Love, _

_ Henry _

 

Maddie shakes her head fondly and runs her fingers over Henry’s handwriting. Henry has never admitted it to anyone out loud, but Shawn is that man’s pride and joy. The mere fact that Shawn would still ask Henry for help (despite, she must admit, what Shawn witnessed the other day)…nothing in the world could keep Henry from going to help Shawn.

 

Maddie tucks her hair behind her ears and leaves the house, careful to lock the door behind her.

 

**

 

Shawn has a new rule in place: he will talk to both of his parents, but only as long as they are  _ at least  _ four feet apart at all times and as long as they are not within one mile of Henry’s house. Juliet apparently suggested therapy. Gus suggested aliens. Detective Lassiter apologized and then informed Shawn that bleaching his brain was the only way to get that memory out.

 

Based on the fact that Shawn is hyper observant  _ and _ that he has an eidetic memory, the memory of him walking in on his parents is never going to leave.

 

“Goose,” Maddie says, ignoring the way Shawn winces and then jerks his head towards Juliet, “do you want to help your father and me decorate the Christmas tree this year?”

 

Shawn whimpers and glances at Juliet. “Only if the entire family stays downstairs and only  _ one _ of you leaves the room at a time.”

 

Henry raises his eyebrows at Shawn and swirls his glass of wine. “Are you still hung up on that, Shawn?”

 

Shawn’s eyes widen and Juliet ducks her head and lifts her hand to cover her smile. “Am I– am I  _ still hung up on that?” _ Shawn says, his voice rising three octaves. “I walked in on you two –” Shawn gags, and Maddie’s not convinced that it’s just for theatrics, “– doing  _ it. _ Do you honestly think it’s gonna take just a few days for me not to get over it?! I’m still seriously considering Lassie’s suggestion of bleaching my entire brain!”

 

Juliet rubs Shawn’s arm consolingly, but her eyes still dance with amusement. “I told you that you should try therapy, Shawn.”

 

Shawn gesticulates to his mother. “But  _ she’s _ a therapist! Walking in on that ruined  _ all _ therapists for me!”

 

Juliet snorts but manages to cover it with a cough.

 

Henry rolls his eyes. “Listen, Shawn, I know you and I  _ also _ know that you’re an adult. You and Juliet do the same thing.”

 

Shawn immediately holds up a finger to stop his father’s train of thought. “No, Hank. We’re not going there. I want to maintain  _ some _ of my childhood innocence, but if you  _ must _ know, Jules and I aren’t parents!”

 

Maddie hums, as if to say, “that’s fair.”

 

Shawn squints at his parents and picks up his fork, shaking it at the two of them. “Besides,” he says, “you two have broken the cardinal rule of being divorced: dating your  _ ex.” _ He stabs his fork into the salad that Juliet is making him share with her.

 

Henry narrows his eyes at Shawn. “How would you know the cardinal rules of being divorced?”

 

“Television,” Shawn says through a mouthful of green food.

 

Henry shoots him a look, while Maddie says, “Shawn, you know the reason we divorced in the first place. It had nothing to do with falling out of love.”

 

Shawn shakes his head rapidly. “Nope, no, we are  _ not _ getting into this discussion.” He clears his throat. “Jules and I are thinking of getting a dog. Now, we need your vote: do we go for a pug, a Yorkie, or both? Mom?”

 

Maddie rolls her eyes. “I would say just start with one, and I say Yorkie.”

 

Henry takes a sip of wine. “I have to choose between those options?” he grumbles.

 

Shawn nods his head triumphantly. “Yep.”

 

“And there’s no convincing you otherwise?”

 

Another triumphant nod. “Correct.”

 

“Not even in the case of you getting a different breed?”

 

Shawn pauses and looks over to Juliet. “Should we listen to the old bald man?”

 

“Shawn!”

 

Maddie squeezes Henry’s hand. “Honey, you started going bald thirty years ago. Shawn isn’t wrong.”

 

Henry points to Shawn, who is privately conversing with Juliet on the possibility of allowing a different dog breed into the apartment. “It’s his fault! He was an insane little kid! Or do you not remember that time that he decided he could fly and so he climbed up on the roof and was about to jump off of it?”

 

Maddie raises her eyebrows. “You caught him,” she points out.

 

“He jumped off the freaking roof! Of course I was going to start losing my hair!”

 

Shawn and Juliet both turn around, and Shawn folds his hands on the table. “We have reached a decision, parentals.”

 

Henry rolls his eyes. “And? Am I allowed to suggest a different dog breed?”

 

“On one,” Shawn lifts his index finger, “condition: it must be small enough for Jules’ yard. No retrievers. Though,” he says, turning to her and flashing her his puppy dog eyes, “we could –”

 

Juliet immediately shakes her head. “I love big dogs, Shawn, but the poor thing would be so cooped up. No. We’re staying with small to medium dogs.”

 

Shawn huffs. “Fine.” Before Henry can yell at them, he says, “Proceed with your suggestion.”

 

Henry smirks. “A beagle.”

 

“A beagle?” the entire table echoes.

 

Henry nods. “Yep. If you were a dog, Shawn, you’d be a beagle. It’s the perfect solution. If, for some reason, Juliet starts missing you, she’ll have the beagle to keep her company and remind her of you. But, at the same time, beagles kind of remind me of Juliet. Either way, you both would benefit.”

 

Maddie has to admit: Henry clearly put a lot of thought into the dog question.

 

Shawn and Juliet lean closer to each other to discuss amongst themselves. After a moment, they look at Maddie and Henry and nod. “It’s settled,” Shawn announces. “We’re getting a beagle.”

 

Henry winks at them both and lifts his hand for the check. Once he passes off his credit card to the waiter, Maddie leans closer to him.

 

“You’ve been thinking a lot about that, haven’t you?” she whispers to him.

 

“I was thinking about getting Shawn a dog for Christmas,” Henry whispers back, clearly unaware of Maddie sitting back in her seat and shaking her head fondly at him.

 

**

 

Night falls quickly in Santa Barbara during the winter months. At seven o’clock, Henry called it a day and ordered pineapple pizza, grabbed two sodas out of the fridge (the doctor insisted that Henry was not allowed to have beer, and Henry almost cried), and started looking for a movie to watch with Maddie.

 

Exactly five minutes after Maddie walked in from work, the doorbell rings, and Henry pays for the pizza and sets it on the kitchen counter. Maddie opens the lid and peeks inside while Henry grabs the plates. “Pineapple pizza,” she says softly, smiling to herself. Henry sets the paper plates on the counter and waits for her to dish up. “You kept ordering pineapple pizza, even after Shawn and I left?”

 

Henry furrows his brow and steps closer to the box. “Huh,” he says, upon realizing for the first time that he has, in fact, been ordering pineapple pizza for years. “I guess it’s just second nature.”

 

Maddie smiles at him. “You have a soft spot for Shawn.”

 

“And you have a soft spot for guinea pigs. Your point?”

 

Maddie laughs silently to herself. “Nothing, Henry. Nothing.”

 

It’s almost as if nothing has changed in twenty years when Maddie and Henry make their way over to the couch. It’s Sunday night, and they each sit at their end of the couch, as if leaving space for Shawn in the middle so he could hide his face in his father’s shirt if the movie got too scary or so he could rest his head on his mother’s shoulder when he got too tired. Henry picks up the DVD and shows Maddie, as if asking for her approval. She nods, her mouth full of pineapple pizza, and gestures to the DVD player. Henry inserts  _ Ferris Bueller’s Day Off _ in the the player and makes his way back to the couch.

 

Maddie sets her pizza aside and gets up from the couch while the previews play so she can make popcorn. “Henry?” she calls from the kitchen.

 

“Yeah, hon?”

 

“Where did you put the popcorn bowls? Are they in the same place?”

 

“Same place they’ve always been, hon.”

 

There’s silence for a second while Maddie opens the cabinets. “Found it!”

 

Maddie walks back into the living room as soon as the trailers end. Henry waits for her to sit down, then he presses play.

 

There aren’t many days that go by where Henry regrets sleeping with his wife (in fact, there aren’t any), but now, especially, he hates the fact that Shawn walked in on them, because he could have just called Shawn and asked if he would like a movie night with the three of them and Juliet, and he would have accepted. Now, the gap between him and Maddie is too large and Henry finds himself scooting closer.

 

“You know,” Henry says, sticking his hand into the bowl of popcorn, “I think Ferris Bueller was one of Shawn’s childhood heroes. If he hadn’t watched this movie with  _ us, _ he probably would have tried to pull a stunt like this.”

 

Maddie laughs softly. “I always saw Shawn as a mix of both you and Jack, but now that you mention it, I  _ can _ see him looking up to Ferris Bueller.” She looks over at Henry, who seems taken aback by her comment. She squeezes his hand. “And, just so you know, Shawn  _ did _ pull a stunt like this many, many times. Remember that fondu barbeque we were going to? Aside from similar shenanigans, he did try and skip school like that,” she nods at the TV, “once.”

 

“Knowing Shawn, it was either ingenious and you or I would have given him the day off just because of his ingenuity or it wasn’t quite ingenious and you made him go to school,” Henry says, stuffing his face with popcorn.

 

“It was the latter.”

 

“Of course it was.”

 

Maddie rests her head on Henry’s shoulder, and Henry wraps his arm around her shoulders. In the blink of an eye, he’s facing a dozen memories:

 

_ Holding Maddie like this just a few years ago, after Yang kidnapped her, while they watched  _ _ The Brady Bunch _ _ reruns _

_ Watching movies after 10 o’clock so they ran less risk of waking Shawn, but both of them made periodic trips during the movie to check on him and make sure he was still asleep _

_ Taking care of Maddie while she and Shawn were sick with a nasty bout of the flu _

_ Two miscarriages and too many broken hearts _

_ Shawn’s first days at home while Maddie was positively glowing _

_ Holding Maddie’s hand through Shawn’s birth _

_ Maddie being so heavily pregnant with Shawn that she was assigned to bedrest, while Henry ran back and forth from the kitchen, delivering to her current cravings _

_ Maddie telling him that he was going to be a father for the first time _

_ His and Maddie’s wedding day _

_ The day he proposed to Maddie, and her reaction _

_ A dozen date nights, spent just like this _

_ The day he met and fell in love with Maddie _

 

Henry looks away from the television and kisses Maddie’s head. She looks up at him. “What was that for?”

 

“I love you,” he says seriously and unhesitantly. “I love you so, so much, and I never stopped.”

 

Maddie shifts so that she’s at his eye level and kisses him. “I know. I love you, too, Henry.” She settles back against his side and laces her hand in his.

 

He runs his thumb over her ring finger, trying to correctly determine her ring size. It’s time for them to try again.

 

**

 

“Maddie, hon, we need to get going!” Henry calls up the stairs. He checks his watch and bounces on the balls of his feet, hoping that she’ll just hurry up.

 

“Give me a minute!”

 

“I gave you one ten minutes ago! Come on, we’re going to miss our reservation!” He moves away from the stairs, wandering aimlessly about his house. Since Maddie moved back in, there are more pictures of Henry and Shawn decorating the mantle, his nightstand, the kitchen, and other areas. There’s actually good food in the refrigerator now, and Henry actively tries to clean up after himself.

 

Just as he’s about to call for her again, Maddie comes gliding down the staircase wearing her the baby blue dress he got her for Christmas. She curled her hair and put on red lipstick and the sapphire necklace he gave her the first year they ever dated. As she reaches the bottom of the stairs, Henry offers her his arm, and Maddie loops her arm through his.

 

She reaches up and adjusts his tie. “You know,” she says, “it’s been a long time since I saw you wear one of these.”

 

Henry touches the knot on his black tie and clears his throat. “Yeah,” he says, opening the door for her. “Well, it’s a nice restaurant. And we’re going to be late.”

 

Maddie smacks his arm. “Oh, Henry,” she says. “You pulled the same trick when we were married, telling me the reservations were earlier than they actually were.”

 

Henry purses his lips. “I did pull that trick many, many times, and it worked every time, but this time, our reservations are  _ actually _ at 7 this time.”

 

Maddie’s eyes widen and she turns to Henry. “Are they really?”

 

_ “Yes! _ That’s why I’ve been trying to get you to hurry up!” He opens the truck door for her and helps her inside.

 

“Why didn’t you tell me?” she says, a smirk dancing on her lips.

 

“I did!” Henry hurries over to the other side and scrambles inside the truck. As he drives to Stonehouse Restaurant, he reaches for Maddie’s hand and holds her hand the rest of the drive.

 

When they arrive at the restaurant, he herds Maddie inside and she immediately checks in. “Reservations for Spencer,” she tells the hostess.

 

The young girl runs her finger down the list of reservations, picking out their last name. “Spencer for 7:30?”

 

Henry comes up behind Maddie and places a hand on the small of her back. “That’s correct.” He completely ignores Maddie’s amused glare and dodges her half-hearted smack.

 

The hostess looks up, smiles at them, and grabs two menus. “Right this way, please.”

 

As she leads them to their table, Maddie stands and walks on her tiptoes to whisper in Henry’s ear, “You told me the reservations  _ were _ actually at 7 this time.”

 

Henry shrugs and weaves his way behind Maddie to pull out her chair. “We were married for nearly 20 years; you should know me better by now.”

 

Maddie sits down and carefully scoots her chair forward. Once she’s situated, Henry sits in his own seat. “Now,” Maddie says, “what’s the best thing on this menu?”

 

Henry reaches into his blazer pocket and grabs his reading glasses. “I have no idea,” he says. “This is my first time here. Shawn recommended this place to me, believe it or not.”

 

Maddie furrows her brow slightly. “You never brought a date here?”

 

Henry shakes his head. “There was never a woman I liked enough to bring to an expensive restaurant.”

 

Maddie smirks and reaches for Henry’s hand. “There  _ is _ one that you loved enough, though.”

 

Henry squeezes her hand. “You, of course, are different.”

 

“Oh?”

 

Henry sets his menu down and sips from his glass of water. “You, Madeleine Spencer, are the only woman I ever loved. And the woman I also liked the most.”

 

Maddie laughs, causing her eyes to wrinkle at the edges. In the dim light of the restaurant, her blue eyes sparkle as much as the sapphire necklace.

 

Henry nods to the heart-shaped necklace. “I gave that to you almost forty years ago.”

 

Maddie reaches up and touches the necklace with two fingers. “Yeah,” she says softly. “And all I got for you that Christmas was a lousy fishing pole.”

 

Henry shakes his head. “It wasn’t lousy. I still use that pole all the time.”

 

“Yes, but you got me this beautiful necklace and all I got you was a fishing pole.”

 

“But I love that fishing pole, and you love that necklace.”

 

Maddie smiles softly. “I love you, Henry.”

 

“I love you, too, Maddie.”

 

Soon enough, the waiter comes up to take their order. Maddie orders the grilled peach salad, the black cod with the grilled garden vegetables, and a glass of rosé. Henry, on the other hand, orders the pan roasted scallops for his appetizer, the pork chop with the brussel sprouts and smoked bacon, and a glass of red wine. The waiter thanks them, takes their menus, and promises that the food is spectacular before he disappears.

 

When silence settles between Maddie and Henry, he finds that, unlike all of his other non-Maddie dates, the silence isn’t unnerving. He reaches for Maddie’s hands, and as he holds her hands, he looks around the restaurant. Only a handful of people sit at the tables spread around the room, and most of the people are with dates or closely resembling some famous chef whose show Shawn has been watching on DVR for the past two weeks.

 

He looks back at his ex-wife. “Maddie, close your eyes.”

 

She furrows her eyebrows and tilts her head. “What? Why?”

 

He smiles at her. “Just trust me.”

 

She sighs but closes her eyes anyway. “Is this like that stupid hat game that you played with Shawn all the time when he was little?”

 

“Sort of.” He glances around the room again, mentally counting. “How many wedding or engagement rings are in the room?”

 

Maddie is more than a little shocked by the question. She raises her eyebrows and leans back into her seat, pursing her lips. “That’s a little bit random.”

 

“Mads.”

 

She sighs again and furrows her brow in thought. “Um…” she says, drawing out the word. She tilts her head from side to side. “Have any new people been seated?”

 

Henry glances behind him. “No. Same people.”

 

Maddie huffs out a breath through her lips. “I’m just gonna guess seven. Three married couples and an engaged couple.”

 

“Open your eyes.”

 

Maddie does and gasps when she sees Henry kneeling in front of her, holding a little box with an engagement ring placed in the middle.

 

Henry smiles nervously. “You missed one.”

 

**

 

“No.”

 

Henry rolls his eyes and tosses the dish towel on the counter. “Come on, Shawn, I’m asking you for one very doable favor.”

 

“Do you understand how weird it is to be the best man at my  _ parents’ _ wedding? And it’s your second wedding! To each other!” Shawn digs the heels of his hands into his eyes, and Henry gently tugs on Shawn’s wrist so that he doesn’t hurt his eyes.

 

“I get that it’s weird, son,” he says, “but you know your mother and I didn’t divorce –”

 

“– because you two fell out of love, but rather career issues and you regret everything that’s happened since your marriage. Meanwhile,  _ I’m _ dealing with trying to find a way to apologize to Jules for lying to her all these years!”

 

Henry bites back his first retort, of how that’s technically all Shawn’s fault since he didn’t just tell the truth in the beginning, instead saying, “I’ll give you Juliet advice if you  _ please _ agree to be my best man.”

 

Shawn squints at his father, seriously considering the offer. “I don’t have to hear another single story about you and Mom –” his face twists in disgust “– doing  _ it?” _

 

Henry rolls his eyes and raises his hands in surrender. “I will never mention it again. Now, please, Shawn…will you be my best man?”

 

Shawn sighs. “Fine.”

 

Henry grins and claps Shawn on the shoulder. “Well, your mom is asking Juliet to be the maid of honor, so first things first, you two are going to have to get back on speaking terms.”

 

Shawn blinks. “Mom did what?”

 

“In all fairness, Shawn, she’s been out of contact with her only other female friends for years.”

 

“Yeah, but why not ask Mrs. Guster? Or Chief Vick?”

 

“Would you really like to walk Chief Vick down the aisle? You wouldn’t be allowed to do any of your hijinks or shenanigans or antics to cut through your discomfort.”

 

Shawn winces. “Okay, fair point, but I have also known Mrs. G since birth, so I’d be comfortable there.”

 

Henry lifts a finger. “But au contraire,” he says, “you’re not as comfortable with her as Gus is, and Gus is also a groomsman in this wedding.”

 

Shawn stares at him. “Let me guess,” he says, “Lassie is also a groomsman.”

 

Henry taps the tip of his nose. “That’s correct. The only friends I had all turned out to be dirty cops, one of them shot me, and all of them are now dead. I’m a little pressed for friends and family.”

 

Shawn furrows his brow and tilts his head. “What about Uncle Jack?”

 

“I emailed him, but I don’t know if he’s even alive at this point.”

 

Shawn perks up. “So if Uncle Jack agrees, does that still mean –”

 

Henry points his index finger at Shawn. “I have planned on you being the best man since I decided to propose to your mother the second time. It’s going to be you either way.”

 

Shawn rolls his eyes and buries his face in his hands. “But this– why can’t Jules just walk down the aisle with Lassie? They’re still on good terms.”

 

Henry leans forward and squeezes Shawn’s shoulder. “Listen, Shawn, you’re going to have to own up to your mistake. You’re going to have to tell her God’s honest truth, you’re going to have to show her that you’ve changed, and you’re probably going to have to tell Chief Vick that you’re not actually a psychic.”

 

Shawn lifts his head and shakes his head. “No. Dad, no, I can’t do that. I could go to prison if I do that.”

 

Henry raises two fingers. “Two things: first, you could have just told the chief the truth in the first place, but you wanted to be dramatic and it spiraled. Because you did that, you just destroyed a great relationship. Secondly, Karen already knows. I told her when she first called me in. She only pretends that you’re still psychic because I asked her to.”

 

Shawn leans away from his father. “Y-you told her?” he asks, his voice soft and wary.

 

Henry sighs. “She asked me to tell her the truth, and I did, but I just…I didn’t want to push you any farther away, so I asked her to pretend that I told her you were psychic.”

 

Shawn gulps. “You lied to me.”

 

_ “I _ never did. Besides, does it seem like Karen believes that you’re psychic?”

 

Shawn twists his lips, trying to find an instance that he could twist enough to prove his point, but his dad is right. “No. But, still, Dad –”

 

“Karen will cover for you if it ever comes down to it, and she’d probably appreciate the honesty. Do you want Juliet back?”

 

“Dad, yes, of course I do –”

 

“Then just show her that you’ve turned a new leaf. Tell Karen and be entirely honest with Juliet from this point forward.”

 

Shawn scrubs his face with both hands. “How did you get Mom back, Dad?”

 

Henry smiles. “I did everything I could to save our marriage, and I didn’t give up on her. After I got shot, I realized that the best moments of my life were the ones with you two. I learned that I need to travel and do things that she wants to do. Love is about sacrificing some things for your loved ones.”

 

Shawn shakes his head. “That can’t be all that love is.”

 

Henry purses his lips. “Love,” he says slowly, trying to gather all of his thoughts, “is having a dance partner. In a relationship where there are two take-charge people, one has to learn to step back and follow the other. It’s a lot of trust, leaving the opportunity to get injured but hoping that your partner won’t hurt you. It’s closeness and intimacy.” He leans forward and pats Shawn’s knee. “And the more you know your partner, the smoother the dance goes. The more you love your partner, the more you want to dance.”

 

Shawn furrows his brow. “That’s…actually a really great way to describe it. You thought about it, didn’t you?”

 

Henry smiles. “I’m thinking of putting it in my wedding vows.”

 

Shawn winks at him. “I think that’d be awesome, Dad.”

 

**

 

Henry never understood the concept of the groom being absolutely terrified to get married. When he was younger, the mere reminder that he was marrying Madeleine got him through the worst of days, and on his wedding day, he couldn’t  _ wait _ for the actual ceremony to take place. He would marry her today, tomorrow, ten years from now. He would marry her in a church, at his home, even in a garbage dumpster, just so long as he was marrying her.

 

The doors at the back of the church open wide, the organist starts playing “Canon in D,” and the four groomsmen begin walking down the aisle. Lassiter escorts Karen Vick, Jack escorts Maddie’s sister, Gus escorts his mother, and Shawn, of course, escorts Juliet. As Shawn and Juliet part ways upon reaching the altar, Shawn catches his father’s eye and nods.

 

The organist finishes playing Canon and starts playing “Here Comes the Bride.” The small group of people stand as Maddie walks down the aisle, wearing the same white dress she wore thirty-eight years ago.

 

Henry keeps his eyes fixated on her, and she looks just as beautiful now as she did at their first wedding.

 

Father Westley smiles at both Maddie and Henry and gestures for the wedding party to sit. He opens his Bible. “Let me read from 1 Corinthians 13,” he says to the crowd, “better known as the ‘Love Chapter.’”

 

As Father Westley reads the passage, Henry finds himself replacing the word “love” with Maddie’s name.

 

“Love is patient, love is kind…”

_ Maddie is patient, Maddie is kind… _

“It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud.”

_ She doesn’t envy, she doesn’t boast, she isn’t proud. _

“It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered…”

_ She does not dishonor others, she is not self-seeking, she is not easily angered… _

“It keeps no record of wrongs.”

_ Maddie keeps no record of wrongs. _

“Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. Love always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.”

_ Maddie always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. _

“Love never fails.”

 

Father Westley invites the wedding party to stand for the exchange of vows, and Father Westley gestures for Henry first.

 

Henry inhales deeply and runs his thumbs over the back of Maddie’s hands. “Nearly forty years ago, we were in the same place we are now, but the first time, I insisted upon the traditional vows, and you agreed because I was so insistent. But now that we’re actually writing our own vows, I see the point you made all those years ago.” He resists the urge to run a hand down his face and instead focuses on Maddie’s sparkling eyes. “When I first asked Shawn to be our best man, I told him that being in love is like having a dance partner, and I never realized how much that was a reflection of how I saw us. Before I met you, I’d rather be caught dead than dance, but then I met you, and all I wanted was to dance with you. To make the dance smooth, I had to get to know you. And maybe I stepped on your toes too many times, or I dropped you once or twice, so I understand why you took a break. But we’re back together again, and I cannot wait to dance with you until I can’t dance any longer.”

 

Maddie smiles and squeezes his hands. “When I first met you, I pegged you as the type of man who would fight tooth and nail for the people he loves, and I was right. You did everything within your power to keep Shawn safe, both when he was a child and now that he’s an adult, but you also fought to save our marriage the first time and you never stopped fighting to keep me safe. You treated me like a princess and a goddess, but also like a person. You made me feel beyond special, and there was never a doubt in my mind that you loved – or still love – me. While my career took off after our divorce, I learned that there was so much more to life than work, and I almost lost the two most important people in my life by making that decision. Last time, it was you who fought every obstacle to keep us together. This time, I’m going to help you.”

 

Shawn sniffles, and Lassiter moves from his position in the back to pass his handkerchief to Shawn. Henry glances over his shoulder. “You alright, son?”

 

Shawn sniffles some more and dabs his eyes with Lassiter’s handkerchief.  _ “No,” _ he says dramatically, “I’m not okay. This,” he gestures to Henry and Maddie holding hands, “is so beautiful.”

 

The entire church laughs, while Shawn passes the rings to Father Westley. Father Westley straightens his shoulders and looks first at Henry. “Henry, you know the drill, so repeat after me: ‘ In the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, take and wear this ring as a sign of my love and faithfulness.’”

 

Henry takes Maddie’s wedding ring from Father Westley and looks into Maddie’s eyes, now shimmering with tears. “In the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, take and wear this ring as a sign of my love and faithfulness.” He gently pushes the ring onto her finger.

 

Maddie presses her lips together and takes a moment to collect herself. She takes Henry’s wedding band (the same one he wore for nearly twenty years) and repeats after Father Westley. “In the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, take and wear this ring as a sign of my love and faithfulness.”

 

Father Westley grins. “I now pronounce you man and wife. You may kiss the bride.”

 

Henry steps forward, wraps his left arm around Maddie’s waist, presses his lips to hers, and dips her. Maddie laughs and kisses him again, wrapping her arms around his neck.

 

**

 

**_December 2019_ **

 

“Grampa! Grampa, watch this!” Henry drops his newspaper and watches as his granddaughter sticks out her tongue in a tootsie-roll-like formation. She pulls her tongue back in and giggles. “But, wait, Grampa, it gets better!” She crosses her eyes and tries to touch her nose with her tongue, and the very tip of her tongue manages to touch her nose. She blinks in surprise when she touches her nose and grins even wider at Henry.

 

Henry laughs and grabs Lauren, pulling her across his lap. “That’s very cool, Lauren, but you know what’s even cooler?”

 

Lauren shakes her head emphatically. “Nope,” she says popping the  _ p. _ “What?”

 

Henry raises an eyebrow. “Watch and learn, little one.” He straightens his shoulders, puffs out his chest, grabs his soda, and chugs his drink. He waits a second and then opens his mouth to belch “Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star.”

 

Lauren wrinkles her nose and bends backwards. “Gross!” she shouts, giggling. Henry grips her legs in his hands so that she doesn’t fall and continues belching, despite her loud protests. She pushes his hands off her and sits up. “Grampa, that is the grossest thing I have ever heard, and I heard Daddy burp the alphabet once.”

 

Henry raises both eyebrows. “You think that’s gross? Honey, that is what I like to call  _ art.” _ He tickles Lauren’s sides, and she curls into a ball of laughter, trying to push his hands away.

 

“Henry, Shawn just call–” Maddie stops short as soon as she sees Lauren trying to roll over in her grandfather’s lap to get away from the tickle monster.

 

“Yeah, hon?” Henry looks at her, feigning complete innocence. He does stop tickling Lauren, though, and she slides to the ground in her boneless state.

 

_ And he wonders where Shawn got it from. _ Maddie raises the landline in her hand. “Shawn just called to remind us to put Lauren to bed.”

 

Lauren groans and leans against Henry’s legs. “But can’t we just break the rules? Mommy and Daddy will never know!”

 

Maddie purses her lips and shakes her head. “Oh, yes, they will. Come on, honey, off to bed.”

 

Lauren crosses her arms and pouts, and in that instance, she looks exactly like Shawn. “No.”

 

Maddie shrugs. “Alright. I  _ was _ going to make you pancakes tomorrow morning, but if I let you stay up late, I guess we can’t –”

 

Lauren shoots up and runs to Maddie, tugging on her robe. “Promise, promise?”

 

Maddie laughs and smoothes Lauren’s light brown hair. “I promise. Grampa will also tell you a bedtime story, so get up to bed.”

 

Lauren grins and sprints up to her dad’s old room. It takes Henry and Maddie quite a bit longer to get to the bedroom than it does Lauren, but well…she has energy, alright? She’s young and they’re not – end of story.

 

Henry sits down, and the mattress dips with his weight. “What story do you want to listen to?”

 

Lauren pulls the He-Man covers up to her chin. “The one about the time you caught the guy who wanted to blow up the police station.”

 

Henry blinks. “Alright,” he says slowly. “Well, it was October of 1976. Your grandmother had just told me that she was pregnant with –” he points at Lauren “– your father. My police partners and I had been alerted to suspicious activity at this apartment…”

 

**

 

Henry takes off his slippers and massages his feet, digging his thumbs into the soles of his feet. Maddie sits next to him, reading one of Agatha Christie’s books.

 

“You know,” Henry starts, digging circles into the arch of his foot, “when I first met you, and after we started dating, I thought that there was no way on God’s green earth that I could love anyone else as much as I loved you. And every day, I thought there was no way that I could love you anymore than I did at that moment.”

 

Maddie sets down her book and watches the back of Henry’s head as he continues talking.

 

“And then–” he smiles softly “– then you told me that we were going to– to have a  _ baby, _ and in that instance, despite not knowing whether that baby was a boy or a girl, I loved that baby as much as I loved you, if not more so. And when Shawn was born…it’s like my love for you and him made up my entire being. And, again, I thought that – unless we had more kids – there was going to be no other human being I could possibly love half as much as you and Shawn.”

 

Maddie smiles and squeezes Henry’s shoulder. “And then Shawn and Juliet had Lauren.”

 

Henry nods and turns to face Maddie. “God, I love you all,” he says, cupping her cheek.

 

“‘A love that can weather any storm, swim in any ocean, and move any mountain. A love that cannot be measured in mere quantities, but only actions that are for the betterment of the other. This love is unending, unyielding, and unashamed to declare itself.’” She turns her face into his hand and kisses his palm.

 

“I kept that letter you wrote me, you know. All these years and I never threw it out.”

 

Maddie kisses him. “I know, hon. I love you.”

 

He smiles at her and kisses her forehead. “Infinitely more than yesterday.”

 

“And not even remotely as much as tomorrow.”

 

Henry kisses his wife one more time, then lies down in his bed, and turns off the light. Maddie snuggles up close to him, and he puts his arm around her shoulder while she places her hand on his chest. And, even after she’s fallen asleep, he cannot help but thank God for putting these four people in his life that he would move the earth for.

 

Maybe that’s what love is, after all.

**Author's Note:**

> If you think this is the extent of my love for this ship, you are false. I will write so much of this ship that it will get up to 50 fics. I promise. I love them so much. #parents


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